Rescuers localize fire at Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant confinement
Rescuers on the roof of the confinement (Photo: Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
Emergency service workers have localized a fire at the New Safe Confinement (NSC) of the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Radiation levels are being continuously monitored, states Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources Svitlana Grynchuk.
“At 21:30 Kyiv time, the fire affecting the filler material of the NSC Arch’s external cladding was localized. Radiation levels in the Exclusion Zone remain within normal limits and are continuously monitored by an automated system operating at 39 points,” Grynchuk wrote.
According to her, data is transmitted to the dispatch center hourly and, in emergencies, every minute.
She emphasized that the control levels of the ambient dose equivalent rate - used to assess the impact of ionizing radiation on materials and organisms - have not been exceeded. The radiation situation remains under control.
“I thank the Ukrainian emergency service workers and Exclusion Zone personnel for their dedicated work,” Grynchuk added.
Russian attack on the confinement
On the night of February 14, Russia attacked a shelter at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant with a strike drone carrying a high-explosive warhead.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed that at around 01:50, an explosion occurred at the plant. The drone struck the roof of the New Safe Confinement, which protects the destroyed fourth reactor, causing a fire.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry insists that Russia must be completely isolated in the nuclear energy sector following the attack on Chornobyl.
